Objectives Inflammatory periosteal reaction (IPR) on the visceral surfaces of the ribs has been used in bioarchaeology as an indicator of lower respiratory tract disease. This article presents a detailed method for recording IPR on the ribs, even those in severely fragmented states, with the objectives of increasing the consistency of recording and producing true prevalence rates for skeletons so as to improve data comparability between future bioarchaeological studies of lower respiratory tract disease. Materials and methods The presence and prevalence of respiratory‐related IPR were recorded from three different Sudanese cemetery sites using a detailed method for identifying and recording IPR. Sites with variable preservation were chosen to test the applicability of the method. A flowchart to aid in identification of bony changes is presented. The method requires the recording of IPR on three separate sections of the rib (neck, angle, and shaft) and the allocation of ribs into rib cage regions of upper, upper‐middle, middle, lower‐middle, and lower. Results Results demonstrate differences in the distribution of IPR between sites and verify the method's applicability to archeological sites with various levels of skeletal preservation. Discussion While crude prevalence rates can indicate the number of individuals experiencing lower respiratory tract disease within a site, this method can provide information about the distribution of IPR within the rib cage. This should lead to new ways of distinguishing respiratory diseases within archeological populations. This method also allows for comparability between well‐preserved and lesser‐preserved sites by accommodating for rib fragmentation.

Climate change is an indisputable threat to human health, especially for societies already confronted with rising social inequality, political and economic uncertainty, and a cascade of concurrent environmental challenges. Archaeological data about past climate and environment provide an important source of evidence about the potential challenges humans face and the long-term outcomes of alternative short-term adaptive strategies. Evidence from well-dated archaeological human skeletons and mummified remains speaks directly to patterns of human health over time through changing circumstances. Here, we describe variation in human epidemiological patterns in the context of past rapid climate change (RCC) events and other periods of past environmental change. Case studies confirm that human communities responded to environmental changes in diverse ways depending on historical, sociocultural, and biological contingencies. Certain factors, such as social inequality and disproportionate access to resources in large, complex societies may influence the probability of major sociopolitical disruptions and reorganizations—commonly known as “collapse.” This survey of Holocene human–environmental relations demonstrates how flexibility, variation, and maintenance of Indigenous knowledge can be mitigating factors in the face of environmental challenges. Although contemporary climate change is more rapid and of greater magnitude than the RCC events and other environmental changes we discuss here, these lessons from the past provide clarity about potential priorities for equitable, sustainable development and the constraints of modernity we must address.

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